Former captains warn England of Tendulkar threat

Former England captains Michael Vaughan, Nasser Hussain, Mike Atherton and Graham Gooch have warned that even at the twilight of his international career, Sachin Tendulkar would be the biggest threat to England when they take on India in a Test series starting in London on July 21.

Former England captains Michael Vaughan, Nasser Hussain, Mike Atherton and Graham Gooch have warned that even at the twilight of his international career, Sachin Tendulkar would be the biggest threat to England when they take on India in a Test series starting in London on July 21.

"Sachin's a different player now from 2007; the best players in the world change little things about themselves to keep themselves in the game. In the last two years he's become more aggressive, he's gone back to his old way of trying to score when for a period he tried to survive," Vaughan told the 'Cricketer' magazine.

"Chris Tremlett bowled well against him in 2007 and he's a miles better bowler now. But Sachin doesn't have any weaknesses although every batsman is vulnerable on and around the off stump early on. England might go aggressive at him, test him with a few short balls – I've seen people do that over the last two years and it hasn't affected him," he added. Hussain said Tendulkar has rediscovered his aggressive instincts in recent years.

"Technically and mentally Sachin has changed little over the years but he has changed his game plan. He began as a flamboyant, extravagant stroke-maker who had all the shots and simply loved the game. "Once the records and the hundreds started to be racked up, he turned into a run-machine. His priority was his wicket. Once Sehwag arrived, he was happy to let him tee off. In the last couple of years he has rediscovered his flamboyance and is playing shots again," he added.

Atherton recalled how disastrous it can be to give Tendulkar a life when he is not settled. "I dropped him in the gully at Trent Bridge (in 1996) and he went on to get a big hundred. He's not a man you want to put down early on. He was calm at the crease, difficult to get out of his bubble.

There weren't any flaws. He was just a very solid, orthodox player. "One of the most remarkable things is that he has hardly changed at all – exactly the same set-up, very few changes to his method. He's trusted in his technique and power all this time.

He's stayed true to his game," he said. Gooch went down memory lane to recall the young Tendulkar. "No one had ever seen him in 1990. As a 17-year-old it was evident that the lad had great skill, great balance, great timing, an eye for the ball. You could see he had all the attributes to make a top player. "For one so young he had a poise and composure about his batting. You don't often get that in young players; you get the talent and the stroke-making but poise, authority and composure normally come," he said.